JK Rowling goes radio silent on social media, deletes 'trove of tweets' following Imane Khelif lawsuit

PARIS, FRANCE: JK Rowling, the well-known author of the 'Harry Potter' series, has not posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, for over two weeks.

The outspoken writer has also reportedly deleted a 'trove of tweets' during this period.

The likely reason for Rowling’s silence is her involvement in a cyberbullying lawsuit filed by Olympic Gold medal winning Algerian boxer Imane Khelif.

JK Rowling's last posts about Imane Khelif on X before silence

JK Rowling’s last activity on X was on August 7 where she posted a series of messages related to the controversy after the 25-year-old Algerian boxer beat Italian boxer Angela Carini in 46 seconds. 

"For the record, bombarding me with pictures of athletic women to ‘teach’ me that women don’t all look like Barbie is like spamming me with pics of differently-shaped potatoes to prove rocks are edible. I can still see the difference and you look frankly bonkers,” Rowling shared on her X account on August 7.

"Commentators pretending critics of the IOC’s reliance on documents rather than sex testing think Khelif is trans are straw-manning. I don’t claim Khelif is trans. My objection, and that of many others, is to male violence against women becoming an Olympic sport,” she posted on the day, addressing the ongoing debate about the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the participation of Khelif.

"The probable reason that JK Rowling has likely temporarily halted her hateful online rhetoric is because she was named in a lawsuit filed by Olympic Gold-medal-winning Algerian boxer Imane Khelif," Brobible reported. 

Imane Khelif's lawsuit and cyber harassment claims

On August 13, Imane Khelif filed a criminal complaint with French authorities, accusing JK Rowling and others of "acts of aggravated cyber harassment."

The lawsuit has drawn significant attention, with Khelif’s lawyer Nabil Boudi confirming that both Rowling and Elon Musk would be named for their remarks on social media.

The lawsuit also investigates "all people, including those who may have written hateful messages under pseudonyms," as per Boudi.

Boudi previoulsy told told BBC, "Trump tweeted, so whether or not he is named in our lawsuit, he will inevitably be looked into as part of the prosecution."

The lawsuit follows the controversy over Khelif’s participation in women’s boxing which has been a subject of heated debate.

Rowling had previously criticized the IOC's decision to allow Khelif and Taiwanese gold medallist Lin Yu-Ting to compete despite objections from the International Boxing Association.

Rowling questioned the decision, stating, "What will it take to end this insanity? A female boxer left with life-altering injuries? A female boxer killed?" as she wrote on X on July 30.

Internet reacts to JK Rowling’s tweet deletions

Amid the controvrsy and looming legal betal, Internet has noticed JK Rowling's apparent retreat from social media. However, the claims thus far seem unsubstantiated.

Travis Akers, an internet personality, suggested that Rowling had deleted around 27 tweets since being named in the lawsuit.

"JK Rowling has deleted 27 tweets since being named in a lawsuit brought by Olympic Women’s Boxing Gold Medalist Imane Khelif. Rowling has also not tweeted in 13 days," Travis Akers pointed out.

One of the other internet personalities wrote, "jk rowland outchere deleting tweets the same way karen in goodfellas was flushing coke."

Internet users also chipped in with their remarks. "I thought she would happily go to jail for her transphobic views," one said.

Another user praised Khelif, saying, "Imane Khelif, you’re doing amazing sweetie."

One more wrote, "She has better lawyers than Trump, at least," referencing the ongoing legal situation.

Some users questioned whether Rowling had apologized, with one asking, "Has she at least apologized yet?" Another user remarked, "Harry Potter would be disappointed in her."

However, others noted that Rowling had not deleted all her tweets related to Khelif.

"Here’s a screenshot from a few moments ago. She may have deleted tweets, but the ones critical of the man boxer are still up. Her lawyer likely advised her to preserve the status quo and not delete anything potentially relevant until a court order," one user explained.

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.